Overseas Banking Corporation

The president of Overseas Banking Corporation, the second-largest bank in the country, had chosen as his successor the vice-president of finance. However, as the president’s retirement date approached, he began to worry that this star employee could no longer handle the stress and long hours of banking. The VP was absent for extended periods as he tried to deal with his son, who was a drug addict, which in turn caused problems in his marriage. The president now has regrets about not looking into succession management programs and practices earlier. There was only one individual that he had in mind to succeed him, and this individual just did not seem to be the right person for the incredibly important position anymore.

Could succession management have mitigated the impact on the organization of any of these situations? How could succession management mitigate the seriousness of the consequences of not being able to have someone ready to take over the position of president, when the time came?